Ardbeg Anthology 14 Years Old: The Unicorn’s Tale Scotch Review

By Randall H. Borkus

Rating: B-

The Unicorn’s Tale is the second release in Ardbeg’s Anthology Collection, showcasing the distillery’s creativity. Dr. Bill Lumsden, head whisky creation and distilling at Ardbeg, names each whisky in the collection after a different mythological creature. So this time, it’s a unicorn.

Lumsden said, “At Ardbeg we love to experiment with how we can push our spirit’s smoky balance into new worlds of flavor. Some time ago, we decided to try maturing Ardbeg in unusual cask types for the distillery to create sweet and smoky ‘hybrids’ – and so the Anthology Collection was born.”

I could not help but notice last year’s Anthology Collection release, “The Harpy’s Tale” is still available in every Binny’s liquor store I visited in my travels to Chicago. I even saw it on the shelf in North Dakota somewhere recently. I must admit it strikes me to pause and wonder why.

The Scotch
This whisky is bottled at 46% ABV and aged for 14 years.

The nose surprised me with a butterscotch vanilla scent nestled in a significant phenol overtone. The palate has a medium to thin mouthfeel, but the flavor takes right off with a burst of sweet citrus, malt, peated vanilla bean, smoky cooked fruits dusted with a sandalwood dryness. The finish medium and dry. It leaves a smoky bedrock covered with hints of brine, cooked down honey and a cool menthol feeling.

I must admit the butterscotch vanilla scent on the nose really got my attention but after multiple pours, overall, this whisky reminds me of every other Ardbeg expression with its heavy phenol dose. Peat lovers should enjoy this Ardbeg rendition, the price tag not withstanding.

The Price
The Unicorn’s Tale price tag of $169.99 will make it a tough purchase, if you realize you can buy an Ardbeg 10 Year old for $69.99.